2023-24 North Carolina Sports Network
NC Basketball Spotlight, 10-Year Snapshot:
High Point
By David Glenn
North Carolina Sports Network
School: High Point University
Location: High Point, N.C.
NCAA DI Member Since: 1999-2000
Conference: Big South
Big South Member Since: 1999-2000
Big South Ranking Among 32 Leagues (KenPom): 22nd (2023), 24th (2022), 28th (2021), 30th (2020)
NCAA Tournament Bids: 0
Conference Titles: 0
Conference 1st-Place Finishes: 4 (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016)
Head Coach: Alan Huss (44 years old, 1st season at High Point)
As A Player: Creighton (1997-2001)
Record At High Point (Through Dec. 4): 6-3 (.667) in partial season
Previous Head Coaching Experience: none at NCAA level
College AC Experience: New Mexico (2014-17), Creighton (2017-23)
Assistant Under: Craig Neal, Greg McDermott
2022-23 Record: 14-17, 6-12 (8th in 10-team Big South)
2023-24 Preseason Prediction (Coaches/Media): 7th in 9-team Big South
2023-24 Record (Through Dec. 4): 6-3, 0-0 Big South
2023-24 Midseason Ranking (KenPom): #195 nationally (5th in Big South)
Upcoming Schedule Highlights: Western Carolina (12/5), North Carolina A&T (12/8), at Georgia (12/16), UNC Greensboro (12/19)
Big South Opener: at Radford (1/3)
After more than two decades as a Division One program, High Point is still seeking its first conference championship and its first NCAA Tournament bid. Now the Panthers have a new head coach, long-time Creighton assistant Alan Huss, whose initial task is to try to lift them out of the Big South’s bottom tier.
The Panthers’ only real peak thus far came under former coach Scott Cherry, a backup guard on UNC’s 1993 national championship team. From 2013-16, with the help of elite forward John Brown (who’s still playing professionally overseas), Cherry led High Point to four consecutive first-place finishes in the Big South Conference.
Since that stretch, and through the hirings/departures of High Point legend Tubby Smith (a Panthers player in the early 1970s and a national championship coach at Kentucky in 1998) and his son GG Smith, the Panthers haven’t finished higher than fifth in the Big South, which is now a nine-team league.
Since the end of the 2022-23 season, High Point has experienced both sides of the transfer portal to an extreme degree.
The Panthers’ two best players from last season, honorable mention Big South selections Zack Austin (Pittsburgh of the Atlantic Coast Conference) and Jaden House (Rhode Island of the Atlantic-10), are now starters and major contributors in more high-profile leagues.
“We have tried to retool a roster that was severely depleted in the transfer portal, but I feel comfortable with where we are,” Huss said, “We are first and foremost trying to play extremely fast, and we’ve got some players who are extremely skilled.”
With only one returning starter and two returning contributors, the Panthers hit the transfer circuit hard, and that approach appears to be paying off.
During High Point’s 6-3 start, in which all three losses were by single digits (one in overtime), the Panthers played five transfers and three true freshmen in their 10-man rotation. While they haven’t yet played at a fast pace consistently, they have been among the most efficient teams in the Big South offensively, and they already have nice wins over Iona (82-68) and Illinois State (74-72) in nonconference play.
New starting point guard Duke Miles, in particular, has been sensational. A two-year contributor and part-time starter at Troy who sat out most of last season as a medical redshirt, he leads the Panthers in scoring (18 ppg) and assists (4 apg) while shooting almost 60 percent from the field and 36 percent from 3-point range.
2023-24 High Point Panthers
(6-3, 0-0 Big South; through Dec. 4)
Starters
PG Duke Miles, Jr. — 29 mpg, 18 ppg, 2 rpg, 59% FG, 89% FT, 36% threes, 38/13 ATO, 2 blocks, 8 steals
(6-3/182); Troy transfer; 2-year part-time starter (medical-2023), from Montgomery, Ala.
G Abdoulaye Thiam*, *So. — 26 mpg, 13 ppg, 4 rpg, 47% FG, 76% FT, 42% threes, 11/21 ATO, 0 blocks, 5 steals
(6-4/185); ex-Minnesota backup (2022)/Indian River CC star (2021); from Orlando, Fla.
G Trae Benham, Jr. — 25 mpg, 9 ppg, 5 rpg, 41% FG, 100% FT (few), 39% threes, 4/4 ATO, 3 blocks, 4 steals
(6-4/205); Lipscomb transfer (2023 starter); ASUN All-Freshman (2022); from Concord, N.C.
F Kimani Hamilton, So. — 28 mpg, 14 ppg, 8 rpg, 46% FG, 72% FT, 29% threes, 12/13 ATO, 5 blocks, 10 steals
(6-7/220); Mississippi State transfer (backup); 2022 Mississippi HS POY; from Jackson, Miss.
F Juslin Bodo Bodo, Fr. — 19 mpg, 5 ppg, 7 rpg, 67% FG, 36% FT, 1/6 ATO, 18 blocks, 5 steals
(7-0/240); two prep seasons at Southern California Academy; from Yaounde, Cameroon
Key Reserves
G Kezza Giffa, Jr. — 24 mpg, 13 ppg, 2 rpg, 44% FG, 90% FT, 36% threes, 33/24 ATO, 0 blocks, 5 steals
(6-2/165); Daytona State transfer (star); also UTEP (reserve); son of pro from Paris, France
G Titas Sargiunas, Fr. — 11 mpg, 3 ppg, 1 rpg, 31% FG, 80% FT, 40% threes, 7/3 ATO, 0 blocks, 1 steal
(6-4/180); 20-year-old freshman; club ball for Zalgiris-2 (2020-22); from Kaunas, Lithuania
G Bryson Childress, Sr. — 10 mpg, 4 ppg, 1 rpg, 53% FG, 0% FT (none), 53% threes, 5/0 ATO, 0 blocks, 3 steals
(5-9/165); four-year contributor (12 starts); North Stanly HS/Hargrave; from Albemarle, N.C.
F Denzel Hines, Fr. — 12 mpg, 4 ppg, 4 rpg, 58% FG, 71% FT, 40% threes, 1/4 ATO, 1 block, 2 steals
(6-7/205); high school signee; 2x 1st-team all-conference (2023 MVP); from Fontana, Calif.
F Cade Potter, So. — 17 mpg, 4 ppg, 6 rpg, 34% FG, 55% FT, 15% threes, 7/5 ATO, 5 blocks, 4 steals
(6-8/235); Utah State transfer (redshirt in 2022/no PT in 2023); from Orange, Calif.
*—returning starter (started at least 50% of current team’s games last season)
High Point Panthers
10-Year Snapshot
Season — Overall, League (Place), Postseason
2022-23 — 14-17, 6-12 Big South (8th), no postseason (GG Smith)
2021-22 — 14-18, 7-9 Big South (7th), no postseason (Tubby/GG Smith)
2020-21 — 9-15, 6-11 Big South (8th), no postseason (Tubby Smith)
2019-20 — 9-23, 6-12 Big South (10th), no postseason (Tubby Smith)
2018-19 — 16-15, 9-7 Big South (5th), no postseason (Tubby Smith)
2017-18 — 14-16, 9-9 Big South (5th), no postseason (Scott Cherry)
2016-17 — 15-16, 9-9 Big South (5th), no postseason (Scott Cherry)
2015-16 — 21-11, 13-5 Big South (1st), NIT 1st Round (Scott Cherry)
2014-15 — 23-10, 13-5 Big South (1st), CIT 2nd Round (Scott Cherry)
2013-14 — 16-15, 12-4 Big South (1st), NIT 1st Round (Scott Cherry)
*—conference champion
NOTE: Please visit the North Carolina Sports Network’s 2023-24 profiles and 10-year snapshots for all 19 Division One men’s basketball programs in North Carolina.
Appalachian State, Sun Belt Conference
UNC Wilmington, Coastal Athletic Association
